"The automotive industry brings long-term and sustainable investments. It creates well-paid jobs and an environment where all genders are encouraged to play a significant role. The vision that we have is to establish Egypt as the regional automotive hub."
– Mike Whitfield
"The purpose in business is where you can promote diversity, inclusion, integrity, or any values your organization aims to demonstrate but it means nothing if it is not translated into actions."
– Samar Elmnhrawy
"We partner with senior leadership at various organizations in order to create long lasting change where we increase the number of women on boards and in C level positions."
– Raeda Al Sarayreh
CAIRO – Nissan Motor Corporation partnered with the Women Economic Forum, which was organized in Egypt for the first time under the auspices of President Abdel Fattah El Sisi. Nissan's sponsorship and participation in the Women Economic Forum represented an affirmation of its belief in the importance of the role of women in the society's development and their contribution to support the Egyptian economy.
Nissan's leadership executives were keen to participate in the Women Economic Forum's panels. Mr. Whitfield, Chairman & Managing Director of Nissan Motor Egypt and Chairman of Nissan Africa South, participated in "Egypt's Investment Strategy: The Way Forward" panel.
During his speech, Mike Whitfield noted: "Nissan Motor Egypt, as the only original equipment manufacturer in Egypt owning 100% of its plant, is committed to long-term investments in the Egyptian market. We see the automotive industry as a field that women can and should play a big role in. We view great potentials in Africa and in Egypt, a county with a population of 100 million people, with 62 vehicles per 1000 persons, and a GDP rate that exceeds 5.6%."
Mr. Whitfield concluded: "The vision that we have is to establish Egypt as the regional automotive hub. The automotive industry brings long-term and sustainable programs. It creates well-paid jobs and an environment where all genders are encouraged to play a significant role. We are now actively working with the government to realize this vision."
Samar Elmnhrawy, Human Resources Vice President for Nissan Africa, Middle East, and India gave a speech in a panel titled "Creating Purpose Driven Businesses: Commerce, Culture and Creativity."
Ms. Elmnhrawy started her speech by stating: "I am very happy to be part of this gathering today as I have never imagined that we have such talented and professional women in Egypt."
Ms. Elmnhrawy added: "In Nissan, our purpose is enriching people's lives. In order to translate this into actions, we had to look at the changing demographics for automotive industry. Our customer base is changing; technology is changing, workforce and the regulatory authorities that regulate the way we behave are also changing. Through focusing on the changing customer base, we found that 85% of the vehicles' purchasing decision is influenced by women. Nevertheless, 37% of vehicles are owned by women. That is why we launched the She Drive campaign that was put in action in Saudi Arabia to empower women."
The initiative was targeting women in Saudi Arabia. A group of them was selected for a driving lesson and they were surprised later on that their tutor is a male family member. The idea was not only to teach them how to drive, but to transform the whole ecosystem to provide these women with the trust and support required to drive.
Speaking as part of the panel on "Women on Boards," Raeda Al Sarayreh, Director of Corporate Communications for Nissan Africa, Middle East and India & Chair of the steering committee of the 30% club MENA, highlighted two major challenges in increasing the number of women on boards across MENA: "There is a lack of credible and established data on the number of women on boards, and a poor pipeline of women who are on a path to board placements. The 30% Club is a global campaign aimed at achieving 30% representation of women on boards in listed companies, keeping in mind that 30% is the floor and not the ceiling."
Ms. Al Sarayreh noted: "The 30% Club has 14 chapters globally with a regional chapter launched in 2015. We work with partners to enhance the pipeline and number of women on boards, and today, we are happy to be partnering with the Women On board Observatory in Egypt which brings a an institutional and systematic approach on how to measure and track the number of women on boards. Our plan is to take this model across the region."
Furthermore, to enhance Nissan's role in driving equality and diversity, the company sponsored a special workshop in collaboration with Egypt Women On Boards Observatory and the 30% Club MENA with the aim of empowering women in the Automotive sector in the region.
The Women Economic Forum was founded by Dr. Harbeen Arora, famous Indian Philanthropist, entrepreneur and businesswoman. The forum is considered an important regional platform to address important issues related to the role of women in achieving the goals of sustainable development and contributing to the enhancement of the economy and the society as a whole.
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